Technical Field
The present disclosure generally relates to syringes.
Description of the Related Art
Patients suffering from acute or chronic pain in their joints typically receive injections in the joint space for relief and therapeutic purposes. These injections are commonly known as intra-articular injections. Intra-articular injections are typically administered by orthopedic surgeons, rheumatologists, and other physicians and health care professionals.
Intra-articular injections typically include therapeutics that assist in pain relief or treatment by administration thereof into the affected areas. In some instances, intra-articular injection therapeutics may be in the form of steroids. Such steroids may have anti-inflammatory properties that can decrease inflammation of the affected joint; provide relief to patients with non-inflammatory arthritis, such as osteoarthritis; or protect joint cartilage. In other instances, the intra-articular injection therapeutics may have properties that improve the lubrication of the joint, reduce pain, or improve range of motion. Still further, in other instances, the intra-articular injection therapeutics may include local anesthetic to provide a temporary analgesic affect.
Administering Intra-articular injections, however, is a complicated procedure, which requires precise positioning. A substantial portion of intra-articular injections are not effectively administered because of the complex human anatomy and precise positioning required to inject the therapeutic into the joint space. This often results in physicians and professionals using expensive, time-consuming, and complex medical imaging tools to properly administer intra-articular injection in the three-dimensional structure of a patient's joint space. Even using medical imaging tools, the physician may miss the precise location, thus failing to deliver effective treatment.
Commercial implementation of such intra-articular injections may include using a delivery device, such as a syringe, for example. Exemplary implementations of such delivery devices are shown and described in the present assignee's commonly owned U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 14/519,934 and 62/275,422, which are incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.
To effectively administer such intra-articular injections in a simplified manner, reducing the number of components in the delivery device can improve manufacturing and labor costs. Further, reducing the number of components, in particular, moving components, and improving sealability of syringe chambers which house various fluids can avoid, limit, or mitigate cross-contamination between, for example, adjacent barrels of the syringe. Still further, reducing the number of components, in particular, moving components, can avoid, limit, or mitigate the number of parts that can malfunction and lead to cross-contamination. Consequently, new approaches to administration of intra-articular injections that reduce the number of components used in the delivery device are highly desirable.